by Lola Gabriel
“I wish I had the words to describe just how stunning you are, standing there in the candlelight with a smile on your face.”
Gia whirled, her face flushed by both the compliment and by being caught somewhere she was not supposed to be. Her cheeks reddened even more when she saw who the speaker was: Lennox Parker.
“Your Highness!” she gasped. “I—I’m sorry!” She tried to curtsey and fell awkwardly off balance, humiliation flooding through her body as she caught herself from falling on her face.
These damned shoes! she thought furiously, shooting her gaze downward at the floor.
“Why are you sorry?” the prince asked, drawing closer. Gia could feel his irises sinking into her skin, as if he could see the center of her soul with his eyes.
Maybe he can, she thought. He’s a dragon, a far superior species to any of us. Who knows what they can do?
“You’re Gia, right?” he asked, and his voice had the precise effect it’d had earlier, the tones seeping into her veins like liquid honey, heating her down to her marrow.
“H-how did you know?” Gia choked, wondering if there was another reason he had her cornered in the library. Did he find out that Allegra blackmailed Lilith into giving me a job? Is he here to throw me into the barracks? Do they still do that, or is something like this a death sentence?
Cold replaced the flush of heat coursing through her, and the abrupt temperature change made her dizzy and confused.
“I asked Allegra for your name,” the prince said. “I hope you don’t mind.”
“You did?” Gia blurted out. “Why?”
He was within arm’s reach now, so close to her that she could touch his face. Gia was shocked to discover that she was finding it difficult to resist the temptation. She had never been so overcome with the desire to feel a stranger’s skin under her fingertips. What was wrong with her? Had he put a spell on her?
Whatever it was, Gia could not deny that there was a palpable attraction between them.
“Are you upset that I asked Allegra your name?” the prince asked. His tone was much lower now, almost a gravelly whisper, and Gia could not stop herself from stepping into him, her eyes locking on his.
“I’m not upset,” she answered slowly. “I’m just… confused.”
He cocked his head to the side, his brow furrowing.
“Why?” he asked. The look in his eyes told Gia that he wasn’t toying with her.
She shook her hair, a mass of curls spilling down to her ribs, and she tried to look away from him, but the prince gently held her chin between his thumb and forefinger, so he could pull her head toward him.
“Don’t do that,” he whispered. “Don’t look away.”
“Your Highness—”
“Lennox,” he said firmly. “My name is Lennox.”
Gia was beginning to feel drunk the longer she stared at him. What is happening? How is this happening?
She wasn’t granted another opportunity to question herself as his mouth brushed against hers, his breath against her flaming skin.
Lennox was gentle, as if he expected her to bolt back, to push him away and scream, but those were the last things on her mind. Her arms tentatively reached up to encircle his neck with damp palms. Pulling him closer, she sighed, her eyes closing.
“I have never felt like this,” he murmured, his mouth trailing over her cheekbones, his arms sweeping around the back of her gown to touch the flesh of her back. He was so much taller than her, and yet when their bodies finally pressed together, they fit perfectly into one another.
His kisses grew hotter, more urgent, and Gia’s mind was asking her to reconsider what she was about to do, but she silenced it, succumbing to the feel of his muscled body rippling against her.
She didn’t remember him removing her dress or how they ended up on the antique settee. Had the fireplace always been going? Who had lit the candelabra? They were idle questions, sweeping in and out of her consciousness, and she pushed them all aside to focus on his naked form against hers, tasting every inch of her as she quietly moaned.
“I think it is you who I have been searching for my entire existence,” Lennox gasped, raising his face from between her trembling thighs. “You are the one Lucia told me about.”
His words made little sense to Gia, though she didn’t care. She didn’t want to think about what was going to happen after they parted. All she yearned for was the sensation of his member filling her entirely, and she longed for it to go on forever. Everything else could wait.
Her nails dug into Lennox’s sculpted shoulder blades, her cries escalating as his thrusts grew deeper and more urgent, bringing her to heights she had never thought imaginable. Had there ever been another who had made her feel as weak as she did in those moments? Gia believed there hadn’t, and she knew that there would never be another again.
Her back arched upward as she was brought to a second release, and their eyes met once more, the energy between them like bolts of lightning. She shivered with pleasure as Lennox tensed against her, and together, they joined in the way the fates had intended for them.
Spent and satisfied, Lennox collapsed against her, brushing her long curls aside to lay his ear against her thumping heart. They were silent for a long moment, and although Gia did not want to break the spell that seemed to enshroud them, her once forgotten nervousness had resurfaced.
This is a spell. It must be! At least, that was what she had wanted to believe at first. Now, as Lennox’s fingers traced her torso, Gia knew it was much more than that.
“Thank you,” Lennox breathed, his voice sleepy but sincere.
“I feel like it should be me thanking you,” she mumbled, unclear as to why he was expressing gratitude.
“No,” he laughed, propping himself up to stare into her face. “All my life, I’d never thought I was capable of feeling such intense emotions. That’s a long time, you know.” Gia couldn’t help but giggle.
“Yeah, I know,” she replied. She laced her fingers through his thick mane of hair, sliding her palms through the waves. “I also know what you mean. I don’t do one-night stands, so this is new territory for me.”
There. She had said it out loud and put it out there. This was a one-night stand. That was all it was.
Lennox’s face twisted into confusion, and Gia was sure she saw a flash of hurt in his eyes.
“This is not a one-night stand,” he said, sitting up fully. “Is that what you thought this was?”
Her mouth parted as hope tickled her gut.
“I—I don’t know,” she confessed. “I don’t understand it, but…”
“But what?” Lennox demanded.
“But I don’t want it to be.” His expression relaxed, and he leaned forward to kiss her agape mouth sweetly.
“It won’t be,” he promised her. Gia sighed, relaxing into the cushions of the settee.
Suddenly, a loud laugh broke through their private moment as someone stumbled drunkenly into the library. Gia felt Lennox tense beneath her, but she was equally rigid.
“Hey, Harry, look at this place!” a girl’s voice called. “Have you ever had sex in a royal library?”
“No,” came the equally inebriated response. “But I’m game to try it.”
“Oh, no,” Gia whispered, feeling the blood drain from her face. “No…”
“It’s okay,” Lennox murmured in her ear, his naked body still pressed to her as if to shield her from the visitors.
It’s not okay! she wanted to shriek. I’m at a party filled with the Hollow’s elite and I’m lying naked on a couch with the ruler like some desperate concubine! If anyone sees me…!
Lennox jumped from the chaise, nude and furious. “Get the hell out of here!”
“Your Highness!” the girl screeched. “I—we—I didn’t know anyone else—”
“This room is off limits!” he roared, advancing toward them as Gia sank lower into the settee, praying that they could not see her. She huddled behind the back of the couch, and seeing Lennox s
o enraged made her realize why he had confronted the intruders: he had probably sensed her worry, and facing the two drunkards was the only way he could think of to ward them off before they saw her.
Either that, or he was embarrassed to be seen with her. He was the ruler, after all. Gia was just a lowly waitress who lived in the Trenches. There was no worse match than that.
But then Lennox returned to her, smiling warmly at her, and Gia did her best to push her doubts aside, no matter how much the rest of her felt the need to validate her insecurity.
“They didn’t see you,” he said. “I’m certain.” Gia nodded slowly and scrambled along the floor for her dress. “Gia,” he told her gently, “don’t look so scared. We have done nothing wrong.”
“I know,” she agreed. “But that doesn’t mean we aren’t setting ourselves up for ridicule.”
“We’re not,” Lennox promised. “And trust me when I say that no one wants to upset a Parker prince.”
“Are you and your brothers really princes?” Gia heard herself asking. She wasn’t old enough to remember the time before the dragon rule, and the information she’d received was likely rumors.
“Why does it matter?”
“It doesn’t. I was just curious,” Gia answered, smiling softly. “You have made me feel like a princess tonight, Lennox. Thank you.”
Lennox reached out to tenderly stroke her cheek. “Come on. I’ll take you back to the party.”
Gia shook her head quickly. “I think I should warn Allegra first. She brought me here, and I don’t want to blindside her. She might not want to stick around for that kind of show.”
He stared at her for a long moment, and Gia couldn’t quite identify the expression in his eyes.
“What?” she demanded. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Allegra was right about you,” Lennox said.
“What did she say?” Gia asked, suddenly afraid of his answer.
“You’re special,” he replied, “and guileless. And you have unsurpassed integrity.”
Gia was speechless at the heart behind the words. She felt warmth at the fact that Allegra had said that about her, and that warmth only increased at the fact that Lennox truly thought the same of her.
He covered the distance between them and enveloped her in his strong arms, kissing the top of her head with affection.
“I’m so glad I found you,” he sighed. “I’m never going to let you go.”
“After I tell Allegra,” she reminded him.
He nodded and released her, grinning. “I’ve waited this many eons to find you. I can wait another half hour.”
7
Lennox was sure he was grinning like an idiot when he left the library, several minutes after Gia had departed. He had told her to go first, her worry etched into her face like a woodcarving.
“You’re fretting about nothing,” he assured her. “I promise, this is going to be painless. People will be happy for us.”
Gia eyed him with slight wariness. “Are you sure that you didn’t put a spell on me?”
Lennox howled with laughter. “I’m a shifter, darling, not a wizard. We don’t know how to cast spells. We only know how to live forever and set things on fire.”
Gia smiled. “I can think of a few other things you can do,” she murmured, her face blushing pink as she said it. The fact that she seemed embarrassed only made it all more endearing to Lennox, who made a mental note to gently tease her out of her shell.
We have eternity to bring out the best in each other, he thought happily. He was still marveling at her sweetness long after he had returned to the party, almost humming to himself.
“You look pleased with yourself, brother,” Owen commented, and Lennox’s smile widened.
“I feel pleased in general,” was his reply. Owen carefully studied his face.
“May I ask why?”
For a fleeting second, Lennox was tempted to respond, to tell him that he had found the woman whom Lucia had prophesized, the one that the pharaoh had said would come. But he did not. And he wouldn’t until Gia had explained to Allegra what was happening. He had promised her that much, and he wasn’t about to go back on his word.
“Why shouldn’t I?” he asked instead. “I am filthy rich and revered. I have everything I have ever wanted both in the Hollows and in Sunside. I would say my life is good, wouldn’t you?”
“Some might say your life is too good,” Owen countered. A flash of alarm slid through Lennox, but in his state, his brother could not bring down his good mood; not when he had finally found his mate. Nothing would ruin it for him, much less some petty jealousies.
“And to that, I would say that some are seething with envy.”
Owen nodded slowly, a bemused smirk on his face. “And some would say you are delusional. What’s that line that the mortals use, that line from their holy scriptures? Pride comes before the fall?”
Lennox bristled. “What is your problem, Owen? Are you threatening me?”
His brother chuckled dryly. “I don’t need to threaten you, Lenny. You’re going to fall all by yourself.”
“Why are you such an ass? What have I ever done to you?” The smirk on Owen’s face only grew as he stared dubiously at Lennox.
“You can’t be that oblivious, can you?” he snickered. “It must get cold up there in your ivory tower.”
“I’m a dragon. I’m never cold,” Lennox snapped back, folding his arms over his chest. It was strange having such a conversation with his brother when he and Owen had always been close. He couldn’t remember the last time they’d had an argument before Mira had granted the wish. Now, all of a sudden, Owen appeared to hate him.
Almost as much as Lennox himself had hated Wilder before.
The realization made Lennox’s blood run cold. Could his brothers hate him as much as they had once loathed Wilder?
That’s impossible! he thought. I don’t treat them anything like Wilder treated us! I’m cool and understanding and—
“Close your mouth, Lennox. You might catch fairies in it,” Owen chimed, spinning to walk away. Lennox reached out to grab his arm before he could leave.
“Wait!” he implored, not wanting to leave the discussion on such a note. “What is going on?”
Owen’s amber-brown eyes flashed, wrenching his arm away as if Lennox’s touch had injured him. “It’s like I said, brother. Your longing for power is going to be your undoing.”
Defensiveness flared through Lennox, and he advanced on Owen before he could stop himself.
What longing? I have more power than anyone, anywhere!
Whatever joy he had experienced with Gia in the library had faded away, replaced by fury.
“Who’s going to undo me?” Lennox hissed, emerald eyes flashing dangerously as his skin began to scale. How dare his brother imply that he was some deranged, fascist dictator? I’m not like Wilder. I let them do business however they want—as long as it doesn’t interfere with Amarok.
In his anger, he was beginning to shift, but Owen seemed unperturbed by the outburst.
“I don’t need to be a wizard to foresee what is going to happen here, Lennox. You will undo yourself, just as all narcissists do.”
“Narcissist?” he screeched in disbelief. “Are you out of your mind?” Of course this idiot doesn’t realize how good he has it with me! He doesn’t remember what it was like when Wilder was running the show.
Lennox was hardly aware that their conversation had found an audience as their pitches increased. He was aware of little else than the fact that his blood was boiling and his tail was tearing through the seat of his pants. There was a dull throb at his shoulders, where his wings threatened to sprout, and Lennox knew he was seconds away from a full-fledged transition.
“You should calm down, Your Highness,” Owen chortled. “You wouldn’t want your loyal subjects to see your ugly side, would you?”
It was a mocking statement. There was no one in the Hollows who hadn’t seen what the
dragons could do, but it had been many, many years since they had to use intimidation to achieve respect.
Is he goading me? The thought popped into Lennox’s head out of nowhere, and just as quickly as his shift had come on, he willed himself to calm down. In seconds, he was back in his charming, unflappable form, eyeing Owen with contempt and concern.
“I don’t know what’s going on here,” Lennox told his brother. “But you and the others better step into line before you do something you regret.”
Owen grinned humorlessly. “Gods forbid, Your Highness. Excuse me.”
His brother pivoted away, leaving Lennox shaking his head in disbelief. It was only then that he realized that a small crowd had gathered to watch the commotion. Forcing a smile on his face, he waved away his guests.
“Why are you looking at me like I’m a crab cake?” he demanded. “There’s nothing exciting happening here. Go, enjoy the party.”
Embarrassed at being caught, they shuffled away. Lennox didn’t immediately follow; he needed a few minutes to collect himself. Why was this bothering him so much? He must have known that he would endure some envy with his wish.
The truth was, Lennox had not given the situation much thought. He had figured that he would just absorb Wilder’s companies and not be a jerk. His hope had been that all else would fall into place.
And he had obviously been completely wrong.
There has to be a way to make the others see I’m not their enemy.
“There you are!” Lennox turned at the sound of his advisor, Vextor, whose face burst with relief when he saw the prince. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you!”
“Here I am,” Lennox agreed. “What’s the problem?”
“Come with me.” Vextor hurried through the party, leaving Lennox to stare after him. The demon advisor paused to glance over his shoulder, gesturing him with a huge, pale hand. “This is private,” he insisted. “Come!”
Sighing, Lennox turned to look around, hoping to catch a glimpse of Gia, but he could not see her in the sea of guests.
“Lennox!” his advisor called again. “This is important!”
Lennox swallowed his annoyance and started after him, wondering how such a magical evening had taken such a turn for the worse. Vextor shuffled toward the staircase, and Lennox frowned.